After I found a safe place out of town, I sat down. I walked for about twenty minutes. Once again, I was glad I lived in a small town. I didn’t need a long time to get out past the houses. The walk was surprising non-eventful. If you count the fires burning in the distance and the people running all over the place.

  The town appeared to be fully engulfed in fire at this point. And there was a surprising lack of people. I felt like there should have been more people.

  I checked my status.

  “Neat.” I thought to myself. I leveled up. I was almost to the next level too. “Where did I get a healing potion?” I asked myself.

  I thought ‘inventory’ and a gray floating screen appeared before me. “Just like a video game.” I mumbled to myself.

  Thor and Loki both looked at me at my words but both quickly laid their heads back down.

  “I wonder.” I thought. “Do I get a class? How do I get more skills? How do I get rid of minor fatigue? Do I just need to rest?”

  As if in response to my thoughts a new screen appeared.

  “Oh. I do get classes.” I said. “This is pretty cool.” I leaned back and began to go over my options.

  A warrior would be nice. I did like hitting things. And I did have Basic Combat as a skill. I wondered what that did. But I felt a twinge. Fighting is always nice, but I couldn’t always be hitting things. Or I could, but it would get boring. This was a new magical world. I wanted to shoot lightning from my hands. I put warrior down as a maybe.

  Ranger was interesting. I thought I might be able to buff Thor and Loki. I basically already had familiars. But I didn’t want to just become a stealth archer. I knew if I took this class, that would be my future. Nothing wrong with it, but it felt limiting. But I did want to be able to have my friends with me.

  Mage said it was for wielders of arcane magic. I liked that. This was the path if I wanted to use magic. But again, I wanted something that included Thor and Loki. They were more than pets, they were family. I needed to consider something that benefited all of us.

  Rogue seemed like a path to stealth archer with extra steps. That was off the list pretty quick.

  Paladin sounded cool. Who didn’t want divine magic, enhanced defense and healing abilities. This might work. I could heal myself and my companions.

  Alchemist also went on the maybe list. I didn’t know where I was going to be getting resources and I didn’t want to be trapped in a class I couldn’t advance. So I gave this one a miss as well.

  I felt drawn to Druid. I knew this was the one for me. My extra attention on druid caused another screen to pop up. I was pleasantly surprised.

  I read through the specializations for the druid class and determined it was for me. I selected ‘druid.’

  The blue screen asked me if I was sure. I selected yes.

  The world seemed to pause around me for a moment. A verdant, emerald light began to swirl around me, a tangible manifestation of the ancient and mystical energies of nature responding to my decision. The green light danced like leaves in a gentle breeze, enveloping me in a cocoon of magical power.

  The air was charged with a primal energy, the essence of the natural world itself. I could feel the power flowing through me and around me, intertwining with my very being. It was as if the earth, the sky, and all living things were extending their blessings, recognizing me as one of their guardians.

  Then came the blast of knowledge. A sudden, overwhelming rush of information that flooded my mind. It was as if centuries of wisdom, secrets of the natural world, and understanding of the Druidic arts were being poured into my consciousness. I saw visions of ancient trees, heard the whispers of the winds, felt the pulse of rivers and understood the language of animals. The knowledge of how to harness the energies of nature, to heal and to harm, to transform and to protect, all became clear to me.

  This torrent of information was intense. I had to steady myself as I absorbed it. It was more than just learning; it was an awakening. I now had an intrinsic understanding of the balance of nature, the interconnectedness of all life, and the responsibilities that came with this new power.

  As the green light faded, I was left standing, transformed. I felt a new found sense of power and connection to the world. I was no long just a man. I was a Druid, a protector of the natural order, with the powers of nature at my fingertips. Lightning crackled across my fingertips.

  I could sense a presence from Thor and Loki. I could tell they had been changed as well. They had been imbued with their own magic. Thor now channeled the power of shadow and Loki channeled the power of wind and ice. The world was still waiting, full of mysteries to unravel and challenges to overcome. And I was prepared to meet them.

  But right now, I was tired. Too much had happened today. The sky was still dark and ominous. There were occasional flashes of light as thunder boomed. The ground rumbled as the night wore on. It was a restless slumber I found myself in. Eventually, I fell asleep.